Night out with the Baskervilles
by blackpond
Summary: Jack attends a party where the Baskervilles are present and witnesses their charming and enigmatic behavior. Rated M just in case


Disclaimer: I do not own Pandora Hearts nor do I have any rights to it.

It was a narrow and beautiful ballroom. On one side there were windows and on the other side mirrors shaped like windows, reflecting the night sky that rested outside. But it was so very narrow to the point where despite the cool air outside you were hot, the stifling air and the music and the people dancing in a slow rhythmic fashion kind of made Jack want to vomit.

Where most people saw beauty Jack saw something other. He knew the inner workings of these things. He knew the darkness of society and the aristocracy. He knew what lied and lurked beneath, and it belied all of the pretty dresses and wall decorations, all of the beautiful music and soft spoken words. Yes Jack had seen the ugly side of things to the point where Jack could rarely see the good, but there was one light spot in all of this and that was Lacie.

Jack may have been dancing with a delicate, though slightly plain looking, young blonde woman, gently guiding her through the narrow, stifling ballroom looking out at a sea of people who were all breathing in the same hot breath, he may have seen flickering golden wall sconces and a beautifully intricate mural on the curved ceiling overhead, he may have heard music which he was dancing to and the moaning groaning hive mind of people talking and at this very moment he might be whispering sweet, seductive ineffectual nothings in to this woman's high golden ear but with every breath, step, thought and observation he only thought of her, only of his Lacie. With every action he thought, _It's all for Lacie, It's all for Lacie, It's all for Lacie _and these very thoughts made it bearable to do all these unbearable things with a phony smile plastered across his heart and face.

For Lacie he could commit all sorts of heinous crimes and it was all okay because it was all for Lacie.

After whispering his honeyed confession of desire into the woman's ear he pulled back and smiled. She just blushed.

Jack hated that. He hated how they blushed so easily from such simple words, either feigning it when they no longer had the right or genuinely, being dumb and sheltered enough to have this reaction naturally. Jack wasn't entirely sure which one he hated most. He figured it was the blessed sheltered ones who only knew brief snippets of the darker of human desires, if that. He envied them their unintelligence.

Jack longed to be an idiot, blissful and unaware. He longed to wipe his mind and clean himself of the knowledge he was in possession of, the truths that he'd obtained, the things he'd seen, the things he'd done, the things that others did to him. Sometimes he felt that he'd be swallowed whole by the desires and acts themselves, of the people that he himself had chosen to mix with.

He looked with a false kindness at this girl of 16, gaining her first peak into a forbidden world through him and his empty words, and though there was a shyness, and embarrassment, a slight shock, oh there was always a shyness, an embarrassment and a slight shock, there was also a slight hunger and craving for something harder and more substantial to gnaw away at, and it made him want to cry and weep from the insanity of it all.

The same feeling rolled through him that he had when he was a lower class male prostitute and he saw little children peak in through the cracks trying to see whatever act he was being paid to perform. He wanted to say something. He wanted to yell out _'run away. Stop being so eager for more. You keep gnawing and devouring and chipping away at your innocence but can't you see if you keep doing that there will be nothing else left in the end. What's gone is gone and you only get one block. You can't regain that which you have lost. Stop being so stupid and careless'_ But he didn't ever say anything like that.

Instead he looked at the children and thought that in a few years they might be paying clients and he looked at this young woman and wondered about the ways in which he would use her and he figured that she might prove useful in some way, at some point in the future. People could almost always prove to be useful.

He thought back to a time when he could still blush honestly, that time had long since passed him. But there was one person who could bring that feeling back to him.

Lacie.

Being with Lacie was like being alive, like being permitted to breathe fresh clean air after being deprived for so long. He loved Lacie. And Lacie was supposed to be here tonight, along with Glen and Oswald, Jack was sure. And for this purpose he would endure.

The music stopped. The dance was over and there was clapping. Jack parted ways with the blonde woman and went in search of something to drink before he would go play nice with the men. He was almost to the bar when there was a general murmur and then a sort of grace that seemed to fall over everything.

First there was Glen, then there was Oswald and then Jack felt something touch a wisp of his hair before brushing her breasts first against his back and then against the side of his arm.

First there was Glen's warm greeting of "Jack!". Next there was the brush of a skirt against his ankles and then red eyes peering at him.

"Hello my cute little Jack." She said smiling warmly with a hospitality that made it seem like everything was hers to give.

He'd seen her four times since being reunited with her and each time he turned crimson at the thought of her thinking that he was "cute" and "hers". He did indeed want to be hers.

"Lacie." Oswald hissed, his body going tense and his chin slumping to his chest like he was afraid of listening ears, his eyes darting.

He had seen Lacie's breasts brush against Jack and he did not approve.

Lacie simply smiled at him.

"Whatever is the matter Nii-sama? You look flushed." She tilted her head to the side, still smiling innocently. "Are you still having_ that_ problem?"

Oswald recoiled, his eyes squinty and his lips went into a hard line.

"It must be quite _hard_ and _stiff_. Perhaps you best take care of it instead of turning innocent little nothings into dirty little fantasies for your own entertainment, Nii-sama."

Glen chocked on a laugh.

"Oh Lacie, you never fail to amuse me." He glanced at the now beet red Oswald a pace behind him and dressed in his somber, slightly servile red cloak who appeared to be in shock.

Glen just smiled at him and tapped him on the arm.

"Come on Oswald. Let's get ourselves a drink and leave these two alone." He looked down at Lacie. "Now behave yourself."

"Oh, but I won't." she said.

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"I'm sure you won't."

Oswald followed Glen silently but seared a hole through Lacie and eyed Jack like he was some sort of human waste until he passed them.

Lacie watched them disappear, then turned to Jack.

"Really, I've just about had it with those two. Whoa-" She gasped when she turned to face Jack. "Jack! Are you blushing?" She said with wonder and amusement.

"No." He said shyly.

"Yes, you are." She stared at him for a minute as if trying to take in the whole of him.

Her expression hardened visibly and then it softened a little bit into something rather indecipherable.

"I like that, Jack. I like that you can still blush. Not everyone can do that."

_If only you knew_, Jack thought silently as she looked at him.

He just smiled at her in response.

He loved every ounce of her. He truly did. He'd die to spare her even the tiniest bit of sadness. He lived to see that face and those sparkling red eyes that seemed so fearless and strong and dazzling to him. She had a defiance about her, an untamability that Jack admired so much in her. No one could ever conquer Lacie, nothing could ever so much as touch her. Lacie could never be subjugated. She was brilliance and light personified and oh-how he loved that light.

All of a sudden the look of seriousness vanished from her face and her deep wine red eyes glistened.

"You look so cute when you do that Jack." She leaned in closer to him and whispered. "You know all the girls must be so jealous of me, that I'm standing here talking to you."

And it was true. Women were looking at them and then glaring, their eyes fluttering away as their mouths were hidden by their fans, probably uttering something rude or otherwise insulting.

"And can you blame them Jack? I mean you're so beautiful even the men want you."

And it was true. Jack knew. A lot of his clients had been male and they fully enjoyed rutting him over a table and having their way with him, yanking at his long braid, hearing him cry out as they entered him roughly. They loved it. They loved it every bit as much as the women enjoyed being given his full attention when he laid them out on the bed, kissing them and screwing them while their husbands were away, whispering little nothings into their ears.

Normally these thoughts made him feel shameful but the way in which Lacie said it, it was like it was something to be proud of and to his amazement he did fell a certain sense of pride swelling up in him.

"I mean look at them, Jack." She whispered in that hypnotic voice of hers." _They all want you_." She said slowly, placing emphasis on the words and Jack, Jack was feeling dizzy headed and embarrassed and strangely excited and almost positive that his face had to be burning, he was so embarrassed.

She smiled and laughed slightly. He could feel her breath on his ear. He hadn't realized that she was that close to him and although the sensation was nice it did startle him.

He turned at the sensation to look at her, his green eyes wide and he was certain his face burning. Her smile just widened and she slipped her hand into his. It felt cool compared to his burning hot skin and tiny, it was much, much smaller than his own and incredibly soft. Her fingers tightened around his hand and he instinctively tightened his around hers.

_I'm holding Lacie's_ _hand_, he thought in a flush_. I'm holding her hand! Lacie's flesh is touching mine._ And how he loved that flesh.

"You know Jack when you look at me like that you look so innocent." She leaned up close to him and whispered more to his neck than to his ear "Almost a little too innocent. And as much as I love that innocent look Jack at some point we'll have to see what we can do about it."

His heart rate picked up. It was pounding in his chest. Before he could respond she swung away, pulling at his hand.

"Come on, I want you to dance with me." She continued walking; pulling him along and to his amazement they were actually able to carve their way through the mass of humanity that permeated the ballroom.

Finally they reached a spot that seemed to make Lacie happy and so they stopped. Lacie swung immediately into his arms and they just sort of slipped together, their arms and legs finding just the right places to reside. Lacie had a hold of his shoulder, the other hand still in his. Jack placed one hand carefully on the side of her waist. For a minute Lacie seemed to be doing the leading as she spun around a couple of times but eventually she slowed and allowed Jack to lead.

Jack was fine with whatever she wanted.

Occasionally a few of the other female dancers would shoot a look at Lacie while a few of the male dancers admired her from afar, their eyes grazing over her. It upset Jack. He didn't like these dirty men looking at Lacie. And they were dirty, Jack knew it. He'd spent enough evenings in their "company" to know the sort of lewd and disgusting things these men liked to do and have done. They didn't deserve the right to look upon Lacie. Lacie however didn't seem to even notice the looks. She just kept on dancing. She looked up at him.

"You really are rather good." She said.

The song was in the middle, not exactly a fast song or a slow one. The violins whirred in the background. Once again Jack was left blushing.

"At what?" He asked.

"At dancing." She said. "My brother said you were good and he was right."

"Oswald's seen me dancing?" He asked.

He felt uneasy for some reason. He felt afraid of Oswald, there was just something eerie about him. Oswald shook him to his core. There was a quality to him, an appraising stare that he possessed that made him seem impenetrable. Jack smiled at Oswald, talked to (really more like at) Oswald. But Oswald didn't respond to any of Jack's normal tricks. He just would stare at him and make him unsure of what to do. There was no charming Oswald. There was just Oswald, the marble man looking at you and judging you as if he knew all, as if he could peer into your soul. And that scared Jack, because he really, really didn't want anyone to see inside his soul. He didn't even want to see inside his soul. Jack had put up a barrier that he was more than happy with. He didn't want anyone to see past it. His façade was what he wanted the world to see. That's what he wanted. But Oswald seemed to threaten that.

Oswald was also nearly impossible to read. Jack had always been good at reading people. But he couldn't read Oswald. It bothered him.

_He's Lacie's older brother_, Jack thought. _I need to at least try to befriend him._

But Oswald didn't exactly seem to like him or even be open to the idea of friendship with anyone. How did you even begin to befriend someone like that?

Lacie went on talking.

"He observed you dancing during his time stalking you." She smiled up at him. "He told me all about it after you crashed that stupid "thing" Glen was holding. I can't believe he spent all that time researching you."

Jack smiled thinly at the memory of meeting Oswald.

"I don't think Oswald cares for me." He said quietly.

Lacie sighed in exasperation.

"But he does like you."

Jack just looked at her, disbelieving.

"How can you tell?"

Lacie's eyes brightened.

"Nii-sama is weird, introverted and pretty much isolated except for his time playing devoted Baskerville and fawning over Glen. Occasionally he attends parties like these but he doesn't like them and isn't very social. He basically just follows Glen around like a gloomy shadow. And even though it is his job to monitor the people that move around society and therefor are around Glen, you hardly seem like a threat and yet he spent all of that time obtaining hard to find information about you, your movements, your past. He was rather…thorough with you where he hadn't been with others. I mean he didn't even know that Count Sevflov sleeps with other men and that's hardly top secret information. Even _I_ know that." Her smile widened. "I dare say that Nii-sama is rather…interested in you."

Jack laughed.

"Being interested doesn't mean that he doesn't hate me though."

"Oh no, Jack. My brother does not hate you. He just doesn't understand you. You are…unfathomable to him. In truth I think he's just fascinated by you is all. Nii-sama is terrible about expressing his feelings or even forming sentences for that matter but trust me he likes you. I can tell. I think he's becoming more and more used to the idea of you being around. He's grown to tolerate you much better than before. In no time I'm sure you'll be friends, which will be good for Nii-sama. You'll actually be his first friend. He doesn't have that many, unless you don't count me, and then he has none."

"What about the other Baskervilles?" Jack asked.

Her eyes flickered past his shoulders now as they danced, for some reason she was no longer looking him in the eye and her voice grew somewhat scornful.

"The other Baskervilles are _not_ his friends. They're just fascinated by what he'll_ become_, the title he'll inherit. It has nothing to do with him and I think Nii-sama know that already. I think that's why he enjoys spending his free time alone. I think it's easier for him."

"What about Glen?"

Lacie laughed derisively.

"Don't even get me started on Glen."

For a while they just danced, until once again Lacie's voice broke through the stuffy hum of voices and the music of the small orchestra that was playing.

"What do you think of these parties?" she asked him solemnly, her voice very thoughtful all of a sudden.

Jack thought for a minute and then smiled.

"I think they're fine as long as I'm with you."

She smiled and laughed.

"Always with those answers of yours."

Jack blushed.

But it was true and he wondered if she realized just how much he meant those words that he'd just spoken.

_Will she ever know_, he wondered_. Will I ever be able to say it right so she understands just how much I love her, that I'd do anything for her, just to make her happy?_

"What about you?" Jack asked.

"Hmm?" Lacie answered lazily.

"What about you? What do you think about these parties?

"I hate them." Lacie said flatly. "I simply hate them."

She didn't elaborate and she didn't seem to want to so Jack left it alone.

They continued to dance and Lacie seemed in-exhaustible and because of this so was Jack. Every now and then the song would change and there'd be a pause for clapping before another song and dance began. Slowly the songs became more languid and slow, lacking the more upbeat and cheery notes of before and therefor requiring more languid movements to go along with them. It also seemed that Lacie interpreted this as meaning they had to dance much, much closer than before.

"Oh, look." She said with a laugh. "There's Nii-sama."

"Oswald." Jack mumbled as he turned to see in the direction that Lacie had been looking.

Sure enough there was Oswald, a look of boredom and confusion painted across his features as he huddled near a window and a sconce almost as if he were wishing he could become one with them. His arms were folded and he was eyeing the dancers as if they were a strange exotic bug that he didn't know much about and wasn't exactly inclined to kill.

Oswald immediately caught Jack's eyes and his violet eyes darkened as he seemed to redirect himself physically toward Lacie and Jack, eyeing Jack with a look that could only be labeled as disdain. The dark haired man rearranged his crossed arms and appeared to sigh heavily.

Jack couldn't figure out why this one man in particular disliked him so much. He'd tried. He'd made every effort and yet still Oswald seemed to hate him.

Then again Oswald didn't seem to like very many people and the only person that Oswald did show any warmth to (if you could call it that) was Lacie and even then it seemed rather restrained and formal.

Oswald also seemed to care for Glen though concerned seemed to be more the fitting word for it. Oswald seemed to fret and worry over his master and yet also appear calm on that thinly stretched public face of his. It seemed apparent that Oswald looked up to his master and maybe even admired him, though he rarely understood him. He was intensely loyal and faithful, eager to please but Jack thought that there was something off about all of this.

In some instances Oswald seemed almost a little immature in his eagerness, almost childlike in his blind desire to obey and please, like a child looking for approval and wanting to be loved. That was Jack's impression but then again with Oswald he never felt 100% sure.

He felt Lacie's clever little muscles twisting.

"Hmm. Wonder where Glen is…Oh, there he is."

Once again Jack turned this time to see Glen talking rather animatedly to a group of men, one man in particular was a bit older with white hair and a mustache. He had a young blonde woman on his arm who was very petite, possessing an almost pixie kind of beauty with her wide baby blue eyes and petite stature. The woman looked like the older man's daughter but Jack had a suspicion that in reality the nature of the relationship was somewhat different, especially when that same said man moved his hand to the young woman's lower back and began to rub and stroke her there slowly.

Lacie smiled.

"Would you like a little background?" Lacie asked.

"Yes." Jack responded.

He and Lacie had once again switched places and now it seemed Oswald was trying to fend off a dance request from a very persistent and determined young woman and doing a terrible job at it.

"Okay." Lacie began. "Glen is an odd man and I have known for quite some time that he likes to withstand long instances of abstinence from sex just to dive back in full force. When his loins start howling out he ups his normal attendance to these things and he particularly loves young married women."

"Really?" Jack said expressing a slight surprise.

"Oh, yes, really. Apparently he loves it. He really enjoys being the "other man". And for the most part he seems to really like up-tight women. He only goes for the up-tight ones for as long as I can remember. Anyway that young woman is Lily Vogner wife to Allen Vogner senior, who is that old man trying to rub her dress off. He used to be from a noble family but they were disgraced. Anyway he started up a law firm but upon marrying his more well-respected wife, a baroness or something, he got a foot hold in finance. Now he is a co-owner of one of the largest banks in Sablier and he is on his third wife, the lovely prim-proper Lily. It should be noted that both his first and second wife died under suspicious circumstances, his first from a carriage accident and his second from a fall down a flight of steps while she was pregnant._ I_ think he pushed her, after all she seemed graceful enough to me. Anyway after 8 months of "grieving" he found his Lily and now Glen is bedding her more than half the week all the while Glen talks to the man regularly and does business with him. I wonder if Mr. Allen Vogner has any idea about what his young wife gets up to, when he's not around and watching." Lacie watched Glen interacting with the man and his associates while the young blonde woman tried to feign a serene and slightly bored face.

Every now and then Glen would glance Lily's way and they both would try to act cordial and sociable. Lacie smiled maliciously.

"Ah but I bet that in another month they'll be through and Glen will enter another period of abstinence." But then Lacie's face grew grave and serious as if just remembering something and for a moment her lovely little brow grew thoughtful and creased.

She bit her lip and looked over Jack's shoulder at Glen and the small group surrounding him.

"On the other hand I doubt he has that much longer left to live, so perhaps he's thinking of gorging himself. In that case I'm going to bet that his next mistress will be that red-haired woman over there." She gestured with a nod of her head over to a very short strawberry blonde woman with a heart shaped face and big brown eyes.

Her hair was done up with a bit white flower that Jack couldn't identify, and was in soft curls a few of which came tumbling down. She only had a pearl necklace choker on and was wearing a beautiful powder blue dress with a rather pronounced bustle. She had a pearl and silver fan and she seemed very demur and shrinking like she wasn't quite sure what to do with herself. She was standing beside a very tall boisterous dark haired man who was talking and drinking and seemed to be enjoying himself very much. The red haired girl just looked around. She seemed positively childlike compared to the man she was with.

"Her name is Anna Bolster." Lacie said. "She's very young, maybe 16 or 17, possibly even 15. She's newly married to the loud man over there who's about 25. Anyway she's fresh out of the convent and those are the very qualities that Glen likes in a girl. He likes very pious women, though Glen himself is not one bit pious." Lacie sighed. "It's very strange…and interesting."

Jack wondered at the way these Baskervilles threw around that word "interesting".

"Anyway Glen likes the whole virginal devout thing so my bet is that he'll go for her next…that is if he doesn't go abstinent for a while." She bit her lip again. "Though I really doubt that he's got that kind of time."

"Does he discuss his…preferences with you like that?" Jack asked appalled and curious.

"No, not exactly. I mean sometimes he does get a little drunk and talk to Oswald about these things and I happen to be around and listening but he doesn't discuss them with me directly but I've known Glen for a long time so I've picked up on his habits. As far as how I know so much about everyone when I spend most of my time in a tower…on the Baskerville grounds…" Lacie just shrugged like it was nothing. "Sometimes I hear things and sometimes Nii-sama discusses things with me. So I learn a lot. I rarely get to go out to parties and go out to town so this is a treat to me. I'm _really_ enjoying myself Jack."

She looked up and smiled at him as her back arched slightly. He blushed and looked down.

"Society and the world are terribly interesting things. Don't you think so Jack?"

Jack nodded absently as Lacie moved closer to him. She kept doing that.

"Yeah, I suppose." Jack agreed, then he laughed softly. "Still though it's hard to imagine someone confessing their preferences to Oswald."

Lacie looked over at where a now slightly scared Oswald was standing. He eyed every woman around him like she was a threat. He was the very embodiment of stormy.

"I know. The first time it happened Oswald was 13 and turned bright red when Glen started to discuss his love of something he calls "proportionate" breasts, not too big, not too small and then went on to discuss his enthusiasm regarding women with nice asses. Oswald looked like he wanted to die and I was in the hallway nearly crying because I was trying to hold in my laughter. No one could see me but I could see Oswald's face as he was returning with Glen's drink and he looked mortified." Lacie started laughing. "He talked about all sorts of stuff like why women are so picky about organ size and how he didn't think it mattered all that much as long as you knew the right things to do with it."

Jack was sure he had to be blushing even worse now and he hoped that nobody around them was hearing the things being said and though he was embarrassed (and strangely turned on) by Lacie talking about such things with such candor he didn't want to seem rude or hurt her feelings by telling her to change the subject. Still it was so distracting.

"Then it went on to which sexual positions were the best and then, and then…" Lacie was getting excited and giggling to herself. "-He asked Oswald about _his preferences_ and poor Nii-sama, who used to blush a lot like you do…" Lacie added tauntingly. "…looked like he was going to die." She couldn't help herself she was laughing so hard and Jack just smiled at her as her forehead rested lightly on his left shoulder. "But I'm not even sure if that was the worst instance of Glen's bonding/help in matters of a sexual nature. When Oswald turned 12 and I was just 10, Glen decided to tell us about the birds and the bees and our developing bodies. So Glen starts talking but Oswald is so mortified and set on "protecting my innocence" that he makes me leave. I instead end up listening to Oswald and Glen's talk outside underneath an open window. And Glen goes on and on not just about the basics or just 'this is the way things go' speech but everything including masturbation, sexual hygiene and how to please a woman. Glen can be very descriptive and had decided that it was his solemn duty to educate Oswald in these matters. He even offered to let Oswald see a real live naked woman. It was hilarious. I think it may have scarred him." Lacie laughed and moved closer to Jack.

Jack looked around trying to see where Oswald was and if he was going to kill him for dancing so close to his baby sister. Right now all Jack could see was Glen who sure enough had made his way over to the tall man and Anna Bolster. Now he was kissing Anna Bolster's hand as he bowed and smiled up at her.

_Lacie's right_, Jack thought.

"I believe a book would have sufficed and even been preferred in Oswald's case. Glen _was_ rather thorough."

All of a sudden he felt Lacie's body press up tightly against his own and a small hand leave his hand and guide his other hand around her so that his arm cradled her lower back and his hand reached the other side of her hip. They were now so very close and Jack was both very aware of his body as well as its proximity to Lacie's and their location and the fact that her older brother, whom he could now see very clearly, was watching him with a tensed jaw and stern eyes.

Lacie pressed her chest to his and when they took the next step in the dance Jack felt _himself_ brush against Lacie. He was very grateful that he was only half-way aroused. He was much too embarrassed and aware of his location to become fully aroused but still he was paranoid that she might notice, or that his pants, which were quite tight, might give him away.

His heart was pounding in his chest. His skin was burning red hot and it felt like his entire body was on fire. He felt like he was in a dream and light headed and very dizzy and yet he felt very still and grounded. It was strange. All of this was strange.

The world was strange. Society was strange. The chain of events that had brought him to this point was strange. This party was strange. The Baskervilles were strange. Glen was _strange_. Oswald was strange. Lacie was _strange_ but he loved Lacie, this mysterious red eyed girl who had come and rescued him on a snowy day when he'd felt he'd lost everything in this world including himself.

She'd come and saved him and 8 year later he was here dancing with her and so happy to have her in his arms he could've cried from the sheer joy of it. The world was strange and it was cruel but it was also beautiful. That's what Lacie had taught him. He loved Lacie. She meant everything to him. He never wanted to lose her again. He was terrified that he'd lose her again, that she'd be taken away and this time maybe forever.

His hands were sweaty and his mouth was dry and everything, even the occasional breeze from a fan, felt too hot for him.

He'd do anything for Lacie.

"Jack." She smiled. "Would you like to hear about the time that I first learned about sex" Her smile was seductive and full of promise and a part of him wanted very much to say yes and to hear her go into great detail about this very subject.

But he also didn't want to embarrass himself and he was keenly aware of Oswald's gaze behind him. He didn't answer her question.

"Lacie, I think we're dancing too close."

Lacie's face fell into a pout.

"Why?"

"Oswald is watching us."

"And?"

"And I think we're dancing too close."

"I don't care." She said. "I like dancing this close to you and if Oswald has a problem with it then he can come over here and say something about it instead of standing over there like a gargoyle staring at us and crossing his arms. He needs to learn to speak his mind. This will be good for him. Like an exercise." She said nestling her cheek against his chest, that same cheek rose into a smile. "Why Jack, why-ever are you so _tense_ and _stiff._"

Jack blushed deeper. She was making him a wreck and yet he didn't want her to stop. He just hoped that he could contain himself. He also hoped that, despite being so closely pressed to each other, she wouldn't feel his arousal. He could feel Lacie's small pointy hip bones on him. It was distracting in the most difficult way.

A few older people gave them disapproving looks. They kept dancing.

"Oswald doesn't like me." Jack said.

"He does." Lacie retorted. "The fact that he's just standing over there and allowing us to dance proves that much. A couple of weeks ago he wouldn't have allowed us to dance. He shows his approval by tolerating things. It's how he communicates. Trust me Jack, he's growing very fond of you. I can tell."

_Fond of me_, Jack thought. _How is she possibly getting that?_

Her body pushed farther against his own and she closed her eyes.

"I'm fond of you too Jack." She whispered. "It feels so nice here like this. I could stay here like this forever and be just as happy as I am in this minute." Lacie was silent for a long while and Jack just held her and danced, happy to be there with her and fine with remaining silent if that's what Lacie wished, which it seemed to be.

The music eventually began winding down and people began dropping off the dance floor, till only a few other than them remained.

_Yes,_ he thought_, I could stay here just like this and be completely happy, with her constantly, guarding and protecting her. I love her so much. I don't want to lose her. _He had closed his eyes, too, now more comfortable with the contact that they shared. He smelled the top of her head carefully and lovingly_. I don't want her to be taken away._

"Jack." Came a deep solemn voice, Oswald's voice, pulling him away from his thoughts and Lacie's sweet smell and the comfort that the warmth and curve of her body against his provided.

He opened his eyes.

"Oswald." He said softly.

He thought that Lacie might've been asleep.

"Nii-sama."Lacie's eyes flickered open and her words were not without irritation

"Come on Lacie's. It's time to go."

"Fine." Lacie sighed.

Lacie's body pulled away from Jack's and Jack could've moaned from the want and lack of Lacie. He was aching for her. Sex and desire had lost all meaning to him long ago except with Lacie. Lacie was different. Lacie was always different, for Lacie he could always be ready. He loved Lacie. Lacie made him feel alive and was like an exquisite drug with no adverse side effects. She made him feel human and alive, with a heartbeat and blood pumping and pounding through him. With Lacie he felt things again, both spiritually and physically. Without Lacie there was no hope, no anything, not even despair. There was nothing.

"Well my cute little Jack." Lacie smiled. "I guess this is it."

"Yes, I suppose it is."

"Well." She said.

Before there could be any protests, from either side, she took both of Jack's hands in her own and kissed each one gently. Then she released them.

"I had fun Jack. I look forward to seeing you again."

Oswald's frown deepened.

"That was very touching Lacie." Glen laughed, coming out of nowhere.

And then Oswald snapped to attention and reverence.

"Master." Oswald bowed his head and Glen just sort of waved him off.

Lacie shot Glen a look of daggers.

"Well did you young ones enjoy yourselves?" Glen asked laying a hand on Jack's shoulder; though Jack had the feeling it wasn't so much a gesture of friendship as much as it was him trying to keep up right.

There was only so much his bandages and smiles could hide. He was a man who was in pain almost constantly and his body was slowly but surely failing him. He couldn't last much longer as he was.

Oswald grunted in response and looked around cautiously.

Jack said a polite "Yes, very much."

But Lacie said nothing and Glen had his eyes fixed on her.

"An amusing evening Lacie?"

Her eyes darkened for just a fraction of a second and she and Glen seemed to be locked in some unknown battle. She almost looked scared and her eyes lingered on Glen and his close proximity to Jack. Then her face brightened and she smiled but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Yes, very." She replied chirping in her pretty little lilting voice. "It was rather entertaining watching Nii-sama stand over there in a corner and struggle to contain all of his various…desires." Lacie smirked as she eyed her brother suggestively.

"Ahhh Lacie." Glen sighed. "You are too cruel."

"Well it's not cruelty, it's the truth." She turned to Oswald and her eyes fixed upon him like he was her prey. "I mean truly Nii-sama a man of your age should have better control of his urges and be more sociable. You're well past the brooding adolescent stage. You'll be 28 next year. At some point you're going to have to stop watching people eat and dance with a strange fixation while doing your damnedest not to injure yourself. It's just creepy." She sighed and smiled, satisfied and through with her speech.

Oswald just looked disturbed and confused, his violet eyes squinting and appearing to struggle.

Jack felt strange and embarrassed. He may have been a prostitute. He was used to sex and the various things that went along with that. He had talked dirty. He had screwed and fucked and been fucked. It was hard to get him in a fluster and yet it was happening here with these three people, only one of them for whom he held romantic and sexual inclinations toward. He wondered if his embarrassment showed.

"I'm going to the carriage." Oswald mumbled.

"Mmm. Well I'm going with." Lacie added like an impatient child.

Glen just coughed slightly and looked over at the red haired woman. Anna.

"I'll be joining you in a moment, Oswald. There's just something that I would like to take care of first."

Lacie's eyes lit up instantly.

"Or rather someone perhaps?" She smiled wickedly. "Anna Bolster." She mouthed, the smile still on her lips.

Lacie held out her hand to Oswald and Oswald's eyes widened before he reached in his pocket and extracted two gold coins and gave them to Lacie. Lacie smiled.

"I knew it." She said.

"Lacie are you betting on my amorous exploits?" Glen asked feigning shock.

"I am." She smiled. "And you really do make it _far_ too easy for me to do so. I'm going to clean poor Nii-sama out."

"Well Lacie I may have to start betting on your toys as well." Glen taped his fingers on Jack's shoulder playfully but suggestively. "I dare say your affections are growing rather refined and steadfast of late."

Lacie's expression darkened and once again there was that scared flash in her eyes that was only there for a minute and then it was gone. She took an unconscious step back toward Oswald, as if he were a security blanket or something.

"Well, if you'll excuse me, Oswald, Lacie, Jack." With a tilt of his head Glen walked off in pursuit of Anna Bolster.

The three young people watched him walk away.

"Well Lacie, we'd better be going." Oswald said sternly. "Jack." He said with a tilt of his head, his eyes boring into him before seemingly raking over his body.

"Goodnight, Jack." Lacie said solemnly, even a little wistfully as she was led away by Oswald.

Jack watched them go, listening to their parting conversation.

"I want a rose, Nii-sama."

Oswald mumbled something.

"Why not? They're just on the table there. They'll get thrown out. Why can't I take one?"

"You can't." Oswald mumbled.

"Oh, I see." Lacie said, leaning in, whispering in his ear. "Is your _problem_ acting up, making it difficult to walk? Is that why we're going to the carriage?"

Oswald sighed and spun on his heels. He walked over to a buffet table and plucked a single white rose out. He checked it for thorns and after pulling a pocket knife out to remove one that he'd found he walked over and handed it to Lacie.

Lacie smiled.

"Thank you, Nii-sama." She said seeming genuinely happy.

Oswald just looked over at her and nodded. They walked a few paces.

"Nii-sama, will you carry me?"

"No Lacie."

"Why not?!" she asked, appalled.

"You know full well why not. You're a grown woman. It's inappropriate. We're not little anymore."

Lacie frowned and sighed.

"But my legs and feet hurt badly. I've been up dancing the entire night. I've hardly had a thing to eat and I'm tired."

They had exited the doors and were outside now near the steps. Oswald's shoes could be heard tapping against the stone.

He looked over at Lacie, who was still going through her list. And there, for one quick impulsive minute, Oswald smiled, _really_ smiled, and swiftly swept Lacie up into his arms and swiftly carried her down the steps. Lacie wrapped her arms around Oswald's neck.

"Nii-sama!" she laughed, her laugh fading until it was nothing but a faint sound on the nights breeze from the open doors.

For the longest time Jack just stood there contemplating.

"Goodnight Jack." Came Glen's hurried goodbye as he made for the door, some red lipstick smeared on his loosened collar.

He turned around.

"Jack if you have any time come by tomorrow. You can even stay for supper if you'd like. We're having roast. It's very good. Our cooks don't disappoint I assure you. And I'm sure it would please Lacie if you came."

Jack smiled, his eyes widening a little at the generous offer.

"Yes, I'd love to. Thank you Glen. I'll be there for sure. Goodnight Glen."

Glen nodded his head and was off.

And like that the strange and wonderful Baskervilles were gone along with the one thing that made Jack feel anything: Lacie.

Lacie was once again gone, her beautiful voice and her swaying hair and deep red eyes no longer before him. He could've cried out from the absence if not for the passion for her that was coursing through him.

He turned around.

It was late. Most people were gone but a few remained, one of which was a young blonde woman, now unattended and sitting in a corner, named Lily Vogner.

People always had their uses.

She was now being cast aside by Glen and therefor perhaps a little bored and longing for company. She must know some things about Glen. Jack would do whatever he had to to get this information out of her. After all if he wanted to remain by Lacie's side he needed to know everything that he could about the Baskervilles and that meant especially about Glen.

He'd use this woman to that end.

It was surprisingly easy now. And in his mind it was all acceptable if it was for Lacie.

He looked down at the woman and smiled his most brilliant and earnest smile. People always had their uses. This woman was no exception.

"I'm sorry but would you mind if I sat down? You see I just couldn't help admiring you from over there when I was dancing with my friend. You really are so beautiful. My name is Jack Vessalius by the way."

"Oh. I'm Lily Vogner. Nice to meet you." She stuck out her hand and Jack bowed like a perfect gentleman and kissed it reverently.

She blushed. And Jack knew, with a smile on his lips, that by the end of the night he would have her in some dark corner, skirt pushed up, moaning and that she would tell him everything that he wanted to know. And he would endure it, biting the inside of his cheek, with his eyes shut tight and a different name on his lips and face in his mind and person in his heart just like he'd done so many nights before, thrusting and releasing himself into another in an act that never really completely satisfied his desire.

This was what he had become, but somehow that was all okay to him, because it was all for Lacie.

-M. Palovna


End file.
